A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, sitting at Maitama, on Thursday, rejected three subpoenaed witnesses the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, sought to produce against the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr. Godwin Emefiele.
The court, in a ruling that was delivered by Justice Hamza Muazu, held that names of the witnesses were in a list of additional proof of evidence the anti-graft agency sought to tender in the case, which was struck out on March 20.
It held that since the prosecution had already appealed against the decision, it should await the verdict of the Court of Appeal on the eligibility of the proposed witnesses to testify in the matter.
“The ruling of March 20 is now the subject of an appeal. This court cannot change its own decision by allowing these subpoenaed witnesses to testify. The prosecution must wait for the decision of the Court of Appeal,” Justice Muazu held.
Consequently, he adjourned the case to January 29, 2026, for continuation of the hearing.
Emefiele, who held sway as governor of the apex bank from 2014 to 2023, is answering to a 20-count charge bordering on his alleged complicity in procurement fraud totalling about N1.2billion.
The anti-graft agency, in the amended charge before the court marked: FCT/HC/CR/577/2023, alleged that he illegally awarded contracts for the purchase of 43 vehicles, between 2018 and 2020, worth N1.2bn.
He was equally accused of giving a corrupt advantage to one Mrs. Sa’adatu Ramallan Yaro, a staff member of the CBN, by awarding her private company, April 1616 Investment Ltd, a contract for the procurement of 37 Toyota Hilux Vehicles valued at N854million.
At the resumed proceeding in the matter on October 22, the defendant, who had since pleaded his innocence to the charge, through his team of lawyers led by Mr. Mathew Burkaa, SAN, opposed EFCC’s bid to present the 11th prosecution witness, PW-11, who was identified as Alvan Grumman.
The defence lawyer noted that the name of the witness was in the list of additional proof of evidence dated October 15, 2024, which the court previously rejected.
He argued that since the witness was part of the list the court struck out in the ruling it delivered on March 20, 2025, it was procedurally wrong for the EFCC to seek to reintroduce the same witness through the back door.
Burkaa, SAN, further noted that the EFCC had since applied for permission to appeal against the trial court’s decision.
While urging the court to reaffirm its earlier ruling, Emefiele’s lawyer accused the anti-graft agency of engaging in gross abuse of the judicial process.
The defence lawyer equally advanced the same argument with respect to two other proposed witnesses.
On his part, EFCC’s lawyer, Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, insisted that the defendant did not challenge the appearance of Grumman as a witness, in an objection he initially raised to challenge the additional proof of evidence that was rejected by the court.
According to him, the defendant was specifically opposed to the evidence of the two other witnesses- Tommy Odama and Ifeanyi Omeke.
The prosecution counsel added that the proposed 11th witness, Grumman, was part of the team that investigated the defendant.
He, therefore, urged the court to allow him to appear before it to explain all he knows about the case.
Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that the prosecution filed two separate applications for the subpoena of witnesses whose evidence he said would assist the judge to arrive at a just determination of the case.
However, Emefiele’s counsel maintained that the parties were bound by the subsisting decision of the trial court.
The court had earlier rejected EFCC’s application on the premise that it sought to introduce fresh evidence in the matter, over a year after the charge was filed.
While upholding an objection the embattled former CBN boss filed in opposition to the application, the court held that the EFCC had on February 12, 2024, also filed additional proof of evidence against the defendant.
Justice Muazu held that it was the said additional evidence that accommodated the testimony of a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, as well as that of one Bamayi Haruna Mairiga.
He stressed that the action of the EFCC had a semblance of an attempt to deny fair hearing to the defendant who took his plea on November 16, 2023, since he was not confronted with the new evidence during investigation, as required by law.
The court equally held that the action of the prosecuting agency amounted to trial by ambush and a clear case of fishing for evidence in the trial that commenced since November 28, 2023.
It was the position of the trial judge that allowing the additional proof of evidence after the charge had been amended severally would be prejudicial to the defendant as his right to fair hearing would be jeopardised.
He held that the law made it clear that investigation must have been completed and a prima facie case established, before a charge is preferred against a defendant.
Nevertheless, the court declined Emefiele’s plea for the charge against him to be struck out for being a product of an incomplete or ongoing investigation and therefore speculative.
It held that the charge could not be struck out since the defendant and the prosecution had already joined issues with each other and the trial almost completed.
Justice Muazu held that having gone so far, justice would be served if the trial was completed on its merit and final judgment delivered in the matter.
He further declined to expunge the evidence of the former SGF, Mustapha and Bamayi Haruna Mairiga, from the court’s records as requested by Emefiele who contended that evidence of the two witnesses was offensive to the tenets of fair hearing enshrined in section 36 (2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
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